1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns an electronic franking machine head.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Electronic franking machines are well known and widely used by most companies and post offices in industrialized countries.
An electronic franking machine head includes a print drum operating in a well known manner to print during a single revolution a postal imprint onto an envelope or other mail item to be franked.
Patent EP-A-0 217 576 describes a franking machine head including a print drum with a housing adapted to receive a set of print wheels for printing four or five digits from 0 through 9 of a stamp, each wheel being rotatable to select the digit to be printed so that any required stamp value can be printed.
The print drum of this head includes other housings for receiving block carrying additional information such as "First Class", "Slogan" and "Penta" messages to be printed alongside the stamp on the envelope or other mail item.
Various countries have various rules and practises with respect to the printing of such additional information.
In France, the postal impression (shown in FIG. 1) includes a stamp 100 having a height of 24 mm by a length of 20 mm, a postmark 101 having a diameter of 24 mm and a "Slogan" 102 having a height of 25 mm by a length of 50 mm or 70 mm.
In the United States there are two postal impressions. The first, shown in FIG. 2, includes a stamp 200 having a length of 35.5 mm by a height of 22 mm, a postmark 201 having a diameter of 22.4 mm, a "First Class" mark 202 having a length of 5.23 mm by a height of 19.05 mm and a "Slogan" 203 having a height of 25 mm by a length of 46.7 mm. The second, shown in FIG. 3, includes a stamp 300 having a length of 35.5 mm by a height of 22 mm, a postmark 301 having a length of 19.81 mm by a height of 14.48 mm, a "Slogan" 302 having a height of 25 mm by a length of 49.5 mm and a five-digit number 303 in which each digit is 3 mm high.
In Canada the postal imprint, shown in FIG. 4, includes a stamp 400 having a length of 35.5 mm by a height of 22 mm, a postmark 401 having a diameter of 22.4 mm, a "First Class" mark 402 having a length of 5 mm by a height of 19.05 mm and a "Slogan" 403 having a height of 25 mm by a length of 46.7 mm.
In Great Britain the imprint, shown in FIG. 5, includes a stamp 500 having a length of 26 mm by a height of 22 mm, a postmark 501 having a diameter of 23 mm and a "Slogan" 502 having a height of 22.25 mm by a length of 46.7 mm.
In Germany the postal imprint, shown in FIG. 6, includes a stamp 600 having a length of 26 mm by a height of 30 mm, a "Gebuhr Bezahlt" mark 601 having a length of 3 mm by a height of 28 mm, a postmark 602 having a diameter of 26 mm, a "Slogan" 603 having a height of 26 mm by a length of 46.7 mm and a mail service label 604.
In the print drum of the previously cited prior art document there is provision for inserting separate block into respective housings on the periphery of the drum according to the various practises used in various countries to print appropriate further information. These various housings complicate the construction of the print drum and the operation of configuring the print head, since as many separate housings are required as there are additional items to print in the postal imprint concerned.
An object of the invention is to propose a device which can be quickly fitted to a franking machine print head in order to adapt it to mailing practises current in different countries.